Happy New Year 2016: Interesting facts and picture messages to send to your loved ones

Check out some fun and interesting facts about New Year.

December 31, 2015 10:38 IST

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Happy New Year 2016Facebook

Happy New Year 2016Facebook

Happy New Year 2016Facebook

Happy New Year 2016Twitter

Happy New Year 2016Twitter

As New Year is approaching, people are gearing up to welcome 2016. But most people are unaware of a few facts about this day. Normally, New Year means making resolutions (which people hardly follow), good food, attending events or sitting at home and watching award shows on television.

However, there are several interesting facts and traditions about about New Year which are followed across the world. Take a look below:

About 45% of Americans make New Year resolutions and 25% of them give up their resolutions within a few days. Also, the resolutions that are taken by most of them are to lose weight, to save money, to stay fit, to quit smoking.

Interestingly, the trend of celebrating New Year was introduced 4,000 years ago. The well-known emperor of Rome, Julius Caesar, was the first to declare 1 January as a national holiday. However, in ancient Rome, the new year began on 1 March.

January was named after Janus, the Roman God of doors and gates who had two faces -- one looking forward and one looking back.

People wear red underwear in Italy on New Year's Day (1 January) to bring good luck all year long.

The tradition says that people eat more leafy greens and legumes on New Year as it brings prosperity because beans and peas look like coins.

The traditional New Year's song "Auld Lang Syne" means "times gone by". Poet Robert Burns wrote it in 1788. It was put in the last scene of "When Harry Met Sally", when Harry references a song after he and Sally kiss.

Around one million people gather in New York City's Times Square to watch the ball drop which came about because of a ban on fireworks. In 1907, people saw the first ball which weighed 700 pounds and was lit with hundred 25-watt lights, while today, it is covered in 2,688 crystals, is lit by 32,000 LED lights, weighs 11,875 pounds and is 12 feet in diameter.